India reported 58,097 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, twice the number seen only four days ago, according to health ministry data, taking the total to more than 35 million.

Deaths rose by 534, including the southern state of Kerala's updated death toll of 423, lifting the national total to 482,551.

Authorities in India's capital Delhi on Tuesday ordered people to stay home over coming weekends, with Covid-19 cases quadrupling in a week.

India's financial capital Mumbai and the technology hub Bengaluru have already imposed curbs on movement during the night, and some cities have also closed schools and colleges.

In the northeasterly Manipur state, Modi addressed several hundred people at an election rally, many sitting in close proximity with their masks pulled down.

In Uttar Pradesh, the ruling party and opposition groups also held big gatherings where many went without masks.

Mega-rallies last year helped the Delta variant to wreak havoc in India, and with several state elections due in coming months, health experts and the public are growing worried.

India's daily case load was the highest since September and experts suspect the highly transmissible Omicron variant has begun to overtake Delta, although hospital admissions have not jumped yet.